UPDATE – Israel’s defense minister threatens to eliminate Iran’s supreme leader

UPDATES WITH MORE DETAILS

By Betul Yilmaz

ISTANBUL (AA) – Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz threatened on Thursday to eliminate Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.

“Such a person is forbidden to exist," Katz said in a statement carried by the Yedioth Ahronoth newspaper.

The Israeli minister called Khamenei “the modern Hitler.”

"A dictator like Khamenei, who leads Iran and has made the destruction of Israel his banner, cannot continue to exist,” he said.

“Preventing his existence is one of the operation's objectives."

His threat came hours after some 20-30 Iranian missiles targeted Israel’s central cities, including Tel Aviv, Ramat Gan, and Holon, as well as Soroka Hospital in the southern city of Beersheba.

More than 80 Israelis were injured in the attack, according to Israeli authorities.

Iran’s state news agency IRNA claimed the missiles targeted the headquarters of the Israeli army and intelligence service near Soroka Hospital and that the blast wave caused injuries at the facility.

Hostilities began on Friday when Israel launched airstrikes on several sites across Iran, including military and nuclear facilities, prompting Tehran to launch retaliatory strikes.

Israeli authorities said at least 24 people have been killed and hundreds injured since then in Iranian missile attacks.

Meanwhile, in Iran, 585 people have been killed and more than 1,300 wounded in the Israeli assault, according to Iranian media reports.